pooping on the couch!

[xnovalentine]

Lullabelle has been having litter training issues – she isn’t spayed yet (next month! hurrah for me and no more spraying!!!) but she had been keeping it contained at least in her cage, using the WHOLE cage as her litterbox, not just the litterbox in her cage. I was trying to encourage her to use the litterbox more when i stopped putting bedding in her cage. Now she has a small pet bed she sleeps on – but also uses as her second litter box. I’m always washing the silly bed. Then when I let her out for the run of the house she’s starting to poop (in excess) on the couch and in the bathroom next to the toilet (if only i could get her to use it eh?). Only the bathroom part was an issue before I stopped putting bedding in her cage. I was wondering if this is just her reacting to the new cage change or if she thinks its okay to poo in these areas. Whenever she does go, I sort of spoil her and just say NO and pick up her poo and shoo her off the couch or out of the bathroom and continue letting her run around. Maybe I should make her go in her cage when she does this? Also, I was sitting on the couch with her and i looked over and there was a pile of poos that she was eating. They werent cecetrops (did i spell that right?), they were just regular poos. She does this regurualy. Its really gross.

Do you think there is anything I could do to help this/stop eating the icky poos? Do you think this will stop after being spayed?

[Beka27]

as far as the bathroom goes… i’d maybe get a litterbox for the bathroom to give her some more options as to where to go.  maybe she doesn’t think she has enough potty areas right now?  i don’t know as far as the couch.  there may not be a whole lot you can do… until after the spay.  have you tried scooping her up with one arm (she’s not real big, right?), the poos with another and depositing both her and her poos into the litterbox?

[babybunsmum]

my first bun made a habit of pooping behind (unfortunately not *in*) the toilet.  i never tried putting a litter there but did successfully break him of the habit by restricting him from the bathroom for a few weeks.  as for the couch… does Lulla poop in one general area, like in one corner, of the couch?  maybe sticking a corner litter with some poops in that spot when she’s on the couch for a while.  then, if/when she’s using it, start shifting it bit by bit to a more conveniant living room location.

Baby ate her normal poops after her surgery.  it also coincided with when i altered her diet by restricting pellets and increasing her daily greens.  my vet said not to be alarmed by this and that they will do this some times after having dietary changes, or depending on their diet.  have you made any adjustments to Lulla’s diet? 

[xnovalentine]

hmm a litter box in the bathroom and on the couch does seem like a good idea — i had thought of that but since lulla doesn’t really go in the bathroom unless i’m in there and left the door open (its always closed when she is out). That may be a good idea with taking her and her poos to the litterbox at the same time, i will have to try that.

As for her diet there has been no major changes. I feed her a alphalpa (spelt so wrong – sorry) based pellet because she’s still pretty young, unliminted hay, and her daily greens. I feed her at the same time everyday and since she knocks over her food dish she’s always got some food in her cage lol! I was thinking of increasing her pellets because she’s feeling a bit bony to me and maybe i’m underfeeding her a bit, i’ll see if she continues eating her poos after I do this.

[BinkyBunny]

Where she is pooping – the couch and the near the toilet, is very much territorial. Couches, beds and chairs hold our scent, and well, the bathroom…we won’t go there. But she is marking these places on purpose. There are two reasons why bunnies do this. One is to claim the area, the other reason could be that she is just sending the message that she is also part of the family. Their wild cousins do this for the same reasons.

So right, now, what you need to do is let her know you are the dominant species in the house, and do not allow her on the couch. (you may not have to do this permanently, just until she gets it which could be months ) The moment she jumps on, you say off, and make her jump off, or put her down if she won’t go down on her own. Don’t give her the opportunity to jump up there without you noticing either. Some people have used the noisy things "snappy trainer" but it would startle ME so much! And I was always afraid it would hurt them.

So anyway, I had to ban Rucy and Jack from the couch a long time ago because they would occasionally pee or poo on the couch. But now, yhey may come up to visit or briefly explore, but everything in their body language tells me they know that they couch is already claimed by humans only. They never mark the couch, not even one little sneaky mark.

[Author]

Messages